Many sports lovers like to take part in the action through betting. If you love golf, either playing or just watching, you most likely bet on several or many games throughout the year. Unfortunately, the way most golf fans bet is very rudimentary hence the losses most bettors suffer. They would do a great deal better if they only tracked their betting activity.

As with many other fields, measurement and recording are the best ways to ensure progress. Once you have metrics by which to rank performance, then it is much easier to make improvements.

Information to Track
The first thing you need to know before you start tracking your bets is just what information will you be tracking? Tracking all the information available in a golf game and the markets available is almost impossible and not very rewarding.
You need to record only the vital information. Such information will include the date of the game, the type of bet, who you bet on, how much you bet, the betting odds, and the outcome of the bet. Any other information you record will be supplementary. The above information will give you enough information to create a vivid picture and to observe trends.
Other information you should track are forms of players before the bet, why you chose to make that bet, and reasons why you think you lost the bet. The key to recording the information you will use to track bets is, to be honest with yourself. There is a strong tendency to be biased especially on the mistakes you made. However, if you are dishonest, you will paint an inaccurate picture and your tracking efforts will not be as successful as they would be if you were honest about the information.

Ways to Track Bets
Now that you know what information you need to track; it is time to record it. Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages as we will see below: The following are the best ways to track your betting information.

Notebook
Long gone are the days when people used pen and paper to record information. It is still a choice for the more traditional golf bettors but there are many disadvantages to doing so. Your notebook can be destroyed, misplaced or the information may rub off. There is also the tedious process of recording the information by hand.

On the other hand, every modern smartphone comes with an inbuilt virtual notebook in which you can record all your betting information. It has all the same qualities as a real notebook but with fewer disadvantages.
It is the most basic way for a golfer to record their betting information on mobile. One benefit of a digital notebook is that it is literally endless and you can record all the information you want. If you create a backup on another device or on cloud storage, you can have the information forever. Furthermore, if you are using your mobile device for betting, it is easy to transfer the information on a digital notebook on the same phone.
The notebook, however, cannot be used to conduct computations of the data so the analysis will be done by serious observation or by transferring the data elsewhere.
Another disadvantage is that you will have to input the data yourself unless you can copy and paste it.

Betting Applications

In many golf bettors’ opinion, the best way to track betting information is through the betting application you use to make the bets. Many people now do their betting through their phones as it allows them to do so wherever they are. A great benefit of using one of the myriads of betting apps to tracking betting information is that they record and present the data for you. On the other hand, you will often be limited to the data they choose to record and present.
It will vastly depend on the betting app you use to make your bets and the information they choose to present. However, if they have a good customer care department, you can request much of the information you need.
Another benefit of using betting applications to track the information is that it is readily accessible whenever you need it. Whether you want to analyze it before placing a bet or you want to transfer the information to a secondary location.
A disadvantage of using betting applications to tracking betting information is that the apps may not be compatible between devices. Therefore, there is a large chance of losing your data if you lose your phone or upgrade to a newer model.
In such a situation, you may have to contact the application’s customer support department to see if you can receive the information.

Spreadsheet
For many golfers, spreadsheets are the best way to track their betting information. There are several reasons why spreadsheets are a great way to track betting information. First and foremost, there are spreadsheets by various companies for example Microsoft Excel which you can easily install on your phone. Therefore, you can choose from a variety of spreadsheet applications for the one that suits you best.

Another benefit of using spreadsheets to track your betting information is because they are structured in a way that makes it easy to organize your data. The more organized your information, the easier it is to track it.

Moreover, it is easy to input data in a spreadsheet as you can copy and paste it from other sources.
The biggest advantage of using a spreadsheet to track betting information is the ability to conduct computations. You don’t have to take out your calculator whenever you need to do some analysis which saves you much time and effort.
Tracking your betting data using a spreadsheet is the most recommended option by golf bettors.
Tracking your betting information is a vital way to improve your betting success. As is the case with many pursuits, the more information you have, the better you can monitor your progress.
As we have seen above, the key to tracking your information is to be honest with yourself when recording it. If you are not, you will be painting the wrong picture of your betting history. The three best ways of tracking your betting information is using a notebook, spreadsheet or the betting application itself. However, new ways will arise with improvements in technology.